Inside this post we're sharing an apple themed dot sticker activity! This easy apple tree fine motor activity is quick to set up and so fun!
Fall means apples and apple activities!
Whether it's spring or fall where you live, you can still have fun with this simple apple tree fine motor activity! You don't need to have any real apple trees nearby! Just grab some dot stickers!
Why teach kids about apples?
Apples are a great theme to use with preschoolers and toddlers for several reasons!
- Kids typically have experience with an apple and know what it is.
- There are so many hands-on activities you can do with an apple.
- You can incorporate science, art, fine motor skills, and more into your apple exploration.
- Apples can help you teach kids about life cycles and parts of plants.
- Kids usually get a chance to taste an apple when they learn about it and not only is that yummy, but it can also encourage them to try something new! We also compare/contrast different types of apples and kids get to practice making decisions and building an apple graph.
There's no tasting of apples with this activity, but make sure to try our apple towers activity for a tasty apple snack after you do this dot sticker matching activity!
Supplies
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- Markers
- Painters tape
- Red, yellow, and green dot stickers
- Roll of paper
- Wall or a table to tape the paper to (we taped ours to this toddler table)
RELATED: If you loved this activity, you'll probably also love Post-it note apple picking!
How to set up this Apple Tree activity?
This set up is so simple.
- Unroll your paper roll and tape a large piece of paper to your table or wall. My table is 4ft long, so I covered the table with about 4.5 ft of paper.
- Use markers to draw an apple tree outline,
- Draw some colorful yellow, red, and green dots onto the top of the apple tree to symbolize apples.
- Give kids some red, yellow, and green dot stickers and encourage them to stick the "apples" (dot stickers) onto the tree. Tell them to try and match the colored dot stickers to the marker dots that are already on the paper.
- Extend the activity by adding some markers or crayons to let kids make their own apples and create more on the apple tree.
Adding On: My little students also added small toys to this activity and had their toy animals play in the apple tree!
RELATED: Check out these 10+ Apple Activities kids will love.
Why are sticker activities great for kids?
Sticker activities boost toddler and preschool development in so many ways! Here are some of the benefits of stickers mentioned by my friend OT Holly, plus a few of my additions!
- Stickers help kids develop their pincer grasp which is helpful as they learn to write.
- Stickers encourage play and creating!
- Stickers are great for helping kids develop their language skills. They can learn new vocabulary words as they create!
- Stickers support toddler development of bilateral coordination.
- Stickers are just plain fun!
What do you learn from this simple apple tree fine motor activity?
- Practice color matching
- Build hand-eye coordination
- Strengthen fine motor skills
- Develop language skills
- Practice social skills as kids take turns and work together
- Build creativity and imagination skills
- And so much more!
RELATED: Love Fall activities? Check out these 15+ Fall Activities for Toddlers.
More Apple Activities!
Do you have any favorite apple themed activities? Tell us about them in the comments!
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